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Tag: NASCAR Xfinity Series

  • Weekend schedule for Michigan and Texas

    Weekend schedule for Michigan and Texas

    The Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series and the Xfinity Series head to Michigan International Speedway this weekend along with the ARCA Menards Series while the Gander Outdoors Truck Series will run a standalone race at Texas Motor Speedway.

    All times are Eastern.

    Texas:

    Thursday, June 6

    3:05 p.m. – 3:55 p.m.: Gander Outdoors Truck Series First Practice – Results
    5:05 p.m. – 5:55 p.m.: Gander Outdoors Truck Series Second Practice – Results
    7 p.m. – 7:45 p.m.: Gander Outdoors Truck Series Final Practice – Results

    Friday, June 7

    5:35 p.m.: Gander Outdoors Truck Series Qualifying – NASCAR.com/MRN
    9 p.m.: Gander Outdoors Truck Series SpeedyCash.com 400 – 250.5 miles (167 Laps) – Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 40), Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 80), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 167) FS1/MRN

    Michigan:

    Friday, June 7

    8:30 a.m. – 10 a.m.: Arca Menards Series Final Practice
    Noon: ARCA Series Group Qualifying
    1:05 p.m. – 1:55 p.m.: Xfinity Series First Practice – MRN/NASCAR.com/live
    2:05 p.m. – 2:55 p.m.: Monster Energy Cup Series First Practice – MRN/NASCAR.com/live
    3:05 p.m. – 3:55 p.m.: Xfinity Series Final Practice – FS2 (Airing tape delayed at 4 p.m.)
    4:05 p.m. – 4:55 p.m.: Monster Energy Cup Series Final Practice – FS2/MRN (Airing tape delayed on at 5 p.m.)
    6 p.m.: ARCA VizCom 200 – (100 laps – 200 miles) – FS1

    Saturday, June 8

    10:30 a.m.: Xfinity Series Qualifying – FS2 – Qualifying Impound (Single Vehicle/One Lap All Positions)
    12:05 p.m.: Monster Energy Cup Series Qualifying – Qualifying Impound (Single Vehicle/One Lap All Positions) – FS1/MRN
    1:30 p.m.: Xfinity Series Lti Printing 250 – 250 miles (125 Laps) –  Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 30), Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 60), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 125) – FS1/MRN Defending Race Winner: Austin Dillon

    Sunday, June 9

    2 p.m.: Monster Energy Cup Series FireKeepers Casino 400 – 400 miles (200 laps) –  Stage 1 (Ends on Lap 60), Stage 2 (Ends on Lap 120), Final Stage (Ends on Lap 200) – FS1/MRN Defending Race Winner: Clint Bowyer

    Follow @angiecampbell_ for the latest NASCAR news and feature stories.

  • Pocono Green 250 validates Xfinity visit to the Poconos

    Pocono Green 250 validates Xfinity visit to the Poconos

    It’s easy to shout this from the rooftops. The NASCAR Xfinity Series needs, needs, needs, more standalone events. There’s Iowa, Road America, Mid-Ohio…and that’s really all.

    Every other event is a companion event to a Cup Series event and although that’s been a given since the inception of the series, it’s nice to see a division keep its own identity like the Gander Outdoor Truck Series or the K&N Pro Series. Not every event needs a companion event, even if the times are changing.

    That said, those words were eaten Saturday when Cole Custer made it past Tyler Reddick for the win in the Pocono Green 250. For the first time since the event began in 2016, a series regular won the event and in a dramatic fashion, no less. Although Custer started from the pole and led the most laps, it was until the last corner of the last lap when leader Reddick slipped up and allowed Custer to steal his third win of the season, tying him with Christopher Bell for most wins in 2019.

    The race also highlighted what is now looking like the Big Three of the division for 2019, which is Bell, Reddick, and Custer. All three are regulars with multiple wins this season and all look like serious threats for the title. There’s Bell, a regular threat who is good everywhere and happens to be an 11-time race winner and ahead of him in points is Reddick, who is in the midst of a nine-race streak of top-four finishes. Then there is Custer, who has also won at Fontana and Richmond. Besides those three, there are no clear-cut favorites for the title at this point in time.

    Pocono set those storylines in stone because for once at Pocono, it was all about the series regulars. The Xfinity Series was actually maintaining its own identity Saturday, which is something that it hasn’t done in a while. It was about the Big Three, but it was also about the JR Motorsports drivers. It was also Bell’s Joe Gibbs Racing teammates, who along with Bell, found themselves in a few spots of trouble as Brandon Jones crashed and finished last while Jeffrey Earnhardt spun along with the No. 22 of Cindric.

    It wasn’t about Kyle Larson, or Brad Keselowski, or Kyle Busch, the previous three Pocono Green 250 winners. There was actual racing without the certain dread that another Cup driver was going to score another dull, drab win. It was a race that fans could actually watch and observe actual rising talent. It was almost like the old days when there was actually time invested in watching the up-and-comers of NASCAR. It was almost like a standalone event.

    This is the kind of thing the Xfinity Series needs to have more often; racing among regulars. It’s been pointed out and proven many, many times that when the field is left to its own devices and its own regulars, the racing can be phenomenal. At this point, it isn’t about the track, it’s about the quality of the field.

    That’s not a knock on the Xfinity Series. It’s already known that a lot of the drivers aren’t as good as the Cup Series, but they’re learning. They are hungry. NASCAR needs to cultivate that aspect of the Xfinity Series. They are hungry and they will actually race to get that glory. That’s what the Xfinity Series should be about. It isn’t about the sport’s current leaders; that’s the Monster Energy Cup Series’s concern. The Xfinity Series should instead be concerned with cultivating the Custers, Reddicks, and Bells.

    They actually accomplished that Saturday when it wasn’t about the venue for once, but the personalities in the division. The sport needs to and can grow on this.

  • Weekend schedule for Pocono Raceway

    Weekend schedule for Pocono Raceway

    This weekend the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series and the Xfinity Series head to Pocono Raceway. Martin Truex Jr. grabbed his third victory of the season last week at Charlotte Motor Speedway and is also the defending race winner for the Pocono 400.

    Kyle Busch won last year’s Xfinity Series Pocono Green 250 but will not compete in this week’s race. Instead, Jeffrey Earnhardt, who earned a career-best finish of third last week at Charlotte Motor Speedway, will pilot the No. 18 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.

    All times are Eastern.

    Friday, May 31
    1:05 – 1:55 p.m. – Xfinity Series First Practice (MRN) – NASCAR.com/live
    2:05 – 2:55 p.m. – Cup Series First Practice (MRN) – NASCAR.com/live
    3:05 – 3:55 p.m. – Xfinity Series Final Practice (FS2)
    4:05 – 4:55 p.m. – Cup Series Final Practice (FS2, MRN)

    Saturday, June 1
    10:05 a.m. – Xfinity Series Qualifying (Impound) Single vehicle/One lap – All positions (FS1)
    11:35 a.m. – Cup Series Qualifying (Impound) Single vehicle/One lap – All positions (FS1, MRN)
    1 p.m. – Xfinity Series Pocono Green 250 (Stages 25/50/100 = 100 laps/250 miles) (FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)

    Sunday, June 2
    2 p.m. – Cup Series Pocono 400 (Stages 50/100/160 = 160 laps/400 miles) (FS1, MRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)

  • Reddick Wins Charlotte For Second Xfinity Win of 2019

    Reddick Wins Charlotte For Second Xfinity Win of 2019

    Tyler Reddick scored his second win of the 2019 Xfinity Series season when he won Saturday’s Alsco 300 by 2.10 seconds over runner-up Justin Allgaier. Jeffrey Earnhardt took home third place, while rookies Noag Gragson and Justin Haley rounded out the top-five.

    The win was the fifth of Reddick’s career and his third on a 1.5-mile speedway. Reddick began the race in third, but managed to lead the most laps (110) on the way to winning the second stage and the race itself, enduring several wild late-race restarts.

    “This is a place I didn’t feel good about, I’m not going to lie,” said Reddick. “I was really worried, Charlotte is kind of been the point in my season where things past Charlotte haven’t really gone good. It’s really nice to come into Charlotte, practice good, come into the race, run good, and come away with a win. Hopefully that means the next couple are going to keep rolling this way.”

    The win was the eighth top-four finish for the defending series champion.

    Christopher Bell began the race on the pole and led 33 laps and won the first stage, but suffered a tire failure and made contact with the wall around the halfway point of the race. He would finish 31st in his second DNF of the season.

    Michael Annett, Jeb Burton, Ryan Sieg, Austin Cindric, and Brandon Jones rounded out the top-10.

    The day was excessively hot, which led to a slick race track and several front-runners suffered tire issues or made contact with the wall, including Bell, Jones, John Hunter Nemechek, Earnhardt, Chase Briscoe, and outside-polesitter Cole Custer. Several drivers were also overheated during and after the race, including Reddick, Haley, and Earnhardt, who was later taken to the medical center after experiencing dizziness on pit road.

    Fourth-place starter Austin Dillon had to relinquish his seat to Cup teammate Daniel Hemric with 40 laps to go when the seat in his Kaulig Racing got too hot and began burning his ribs.

    The next race will be June 1 at Pocono Raceway for the Pocono Green 250 at 1 p.m. ET on FS1.

  • Christopher Bell captures third Xfinity win this season at Dover

    Christopher Bell captures third Xfinity win this season at Dover

    Christopher Bell captured his third Xfinity Series victory of the season in Saturday’s Allied Steel Buildings 200 at Dover International Speedway. Bell also won the $100,000 Dash 4 Cash’ bonus for scoring the highest finish among a field of four drivers.

    “I just can’t say enough about everyone on this team 20 at Joe Gibbs Racing. They never quit. They keep working and over the last couple weeks we’ve had really fast race cars, but we just haven’t been able to capitalize on it. This one is really out to my pit crew. They did a great job of getting me out first there where I could control the restarts,” Bell said.

    “Over that long run there, I felt like I could make gains on him running the top. Last time we were here, the top was really good for me, but it seemed like it rubbered up more and the top was a little less of a disadvantage. Once we got the lead – thank you to my pit crew, they did an outstanding job – it’s really special to be here,” Bell continued.

    Cole Custer dominated the race, leading 155 laps but after Kaz Grala’s spin on Lap 154, everybody came in for one final stop and the Joe Gibbs squad got Bell out before Stewart-Haas Racing’s group.

    Bell said after the race in Victory Lane, “There’s no doubt that he (Cole Custer) was really good.”

    Bell had to overcome not one restart but two restarts as Riley Herbst spun out on Lap 175 and then once again on Lap 181 as Grey Gaulding got involved in an incident with Vinnie Miller.

    Justin Allgaier finished second for his fifth top-10 this year, Tyler Reddick was third followed by Custer and Chase Briscoe to round out the top five.

    Stage 1:

    Cole Custer led from wire to wire after starting on the pole in his Stewart-Haas Racing Ford. The Ladera Ranch, California native went coast to coast, leading all 40 laps as there was no caution during the first stage. There was an incident, however, as Noah Gragson got into the wall. There was no yellow as Gragson was able to continue. Gragson ended up finishing 19th after having to pit late in the race.

    Stage 2:

    Stage 2 began right where it left off in Stage 1 as the winner from Auto Club Speedway continued his approach to tame Miles the Monster. Custer began the race leading only 38 laps in his four previous trips to the Monster Mile. After the second stage? He led double that. Custer once again led from start to finish, lapping everybody up to 15th place before the green and checkered flags waved to end the stage.

    This was Bell’s 11th victory in 51 Xfinity starts in his career but he does trail Tyler Reddick by 23 points in the point standings.

    The NASCAR Xfinity teams will have two weeks off before heading to Charlotte Motor Speedway on Memorial Day Weekend.

    Xfinity Series Race Number 10
    Race Results for the 38th Annual Allied Steel Buildings 200 – Saturday, May 4, 2019
    Dover International Speedway – Dover, DE – 1. – Mile Concrete
    Total Race Length – 200 Laps – 200. Miles

    Fin Str No Driver Team Laps S1Pos S2Pos Pts Status
    1 4 20 Christopher Bell Rheem Toyota 200 2 2 58 Running
    2 2 7 Justin Allgaier BRANDT Professional Agriculture Chevrolet 200 3 4 50 Running
    3 5 2 Tyler Reddick Roland Chevrolet 200 4 3 49 Running
    4 1 0 Cole Custer Haas Automation Ford 200 1 1 53 Running
    5 7 98 Chase Briscoe # Nutri Chomps Ford 200 7 7 40 Running
    6 3 22 Austin Cindric Menards/Richmond Ford 200 5 6 42 Running
    7 8 19 Brandon Jones 1st Foundation Toyota 200 8 8 36 Running
    8 16 23 John Hunter Nemechek # Fire Alarm Services INC Chevrolet 200 0 10 30 Running
    9 6 8 Zane Smith PatientPop Chevrolet 200 6 5 39 Running
    10 15 1 Michael Annett Pilot/Flying J Chevrolet 200 0 0 27 Running
    11 14 39 Ryan Sieg Anglin Builders LLC Chevrolet 200 0 0 26 Running
    12 10 4 Ross Chastain Protect Your Melon Chevrolet 200 9 0 27 Running
    13 17 86 Brandon Brown # Vector Security Chevrolet 200 0 0 24 Running
    14 18 21 Kaz Grala HotScream Chevrolet 199 0 0 23 Running
    15 12 18 Riley Herbst Monster Energy Toyota 199 0 0 22 Running
    16 19 66 Timmy Hill R.Anderson Mem/CrashClaimsR.USToyota 199 0 0 21 Running
    17 11 11 Justin Haley # LeafFilter Gutter Protection Chevrolet 198 10 0 21 Running
    18 13 51 Jeremy Clements RepairableVehicles.com Chevrolet 198 0 0 19 Running
    19 9 9 Noah Gragson # Switch Chevrolet 197 0 9 20 Running
    20 21 8 Gray Gaulding World Wide Safety Consulting Chevrolet 197 0 0 17 Running
    21 24 99 Tommy Joe Martins Diamond Gusset Jeans Toyota 197 0 0 16 Running
    22 32 36 Josh Williams DGM Racing Chevrolet 196 0 0 15 Running
    23 26 0 Garrett Smithley teamjdmotorsports.com Chevrolet 196 0 0 14 Running
    24 22 7 Ray Black II ISOKERN/Scuba Life Chevrolet 196 0 0 13 Running
    25 25 90 Ronnie Bassett Jr Bassett Gutters & More Chevrolet 196 0 0 12 Running
    26 23 1 Stephen Leicht teamjdmotorsports.com Chevrolet 196 0 0 11 Running
    27 20 15 BJ McLeod teamjdmotorsports.com Chevrolet 196 0 0 10 Running
    28 33 52 David Starr ATS Chevrolet 195 0 0 9 Running
    29 36 35 Joey Gase Toyota 195 0 0 8 Running
    30 27 42 Chad Finchum Garrison Homes Toyota 195 0 0 7 Running
    31 35 5 Matt Mills J.F. Electric Chevrolet 195 0 0 6 Running
    32 31 78 Vinnie Miller Koolbox Toyota 194 0 0 5 Running
    33 37 74 Mike Harmon JourneyHomeProject/CharlieDanielsChevrolet 144 0 0 4 Running
    34 28 17 Bayley Currey(i) East Carolina University Chevrolet 59 0 0 0 Engine
    35 34 89 Morgan Shepherd Visone RV Chevrolet 50 0 0 2 Overheating
    36 29 38 Jeff Green RSS Racing Chevrolet 15 0 0 1 Brakes
    37 38 13 John Jackson R.Anderson Mem/CrashClaimsR.USToyota 13 0 0 1 Vibration
    38 30 93 Josh Bilicki Chevrolet 10 0 0 1 Transmission
  • Weekend Schedule for Dover

    Weekend Schedule for Dover

    Once again, all three national touring series will be back in action as the Gander Outdoor Truck Series, XFinity teams and the Cup guys will try to tame Miles the Monster at Dover International Speedway this weekend. This will be the first time in over a month that the Trucks will be getting back in action. Here is how you can watch all the drama unfold.

    Note: All times are ET

    Thursday, May 2nd
    2:05 p.m. – 2:55 p.m.: Gander Outdoors Truck Series first practice (No TV) Results
    4:05 p.m. – 4:55 p.m.: Gander Outdoors Truck Series final practice (No TV) Results

    Friday, May 3rd
    11:05 a.m. – 11:55 a.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series first practice, NASCAR.com/live
    12:05 p.m. – 12:55 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series first practice, NASCAR.com/live
    1:10 p.m. Gander Outdoors Truck Series Pole Qualifying (Single Vehicle/Two Laps All Positions, NASCAR.com/live
    2:30 p.m. – 3:20 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series final practice, NASCAR.com/live
    3:40 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Pole Qualifying (Single Vehicle/Two Laps All Positions), FS1
    5:00 p.m.: Gander Outdoors Truck Series JEGS 200 (Stages 45/90/200 Laps = 200 MILES), FS1

    Saturday, May 4th
    9:05 a.m. – 9:55 a.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series second practice, FS1
    10:10 a.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series qualifying, (Single Vehicle/Two Laps All Positions), FS1
    12:00 p.m. – 12:50 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series final practice, FS1
    1:30 p.m.: NASCAR Xfinity Series Allied Steel Buildings 200 (STAGES 45/90/200 laps, 200 miles), FS1, MRN

    Sunday, May 5th
    2:00 p.m.: Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series Gander RV 400 (120/240/400 laps, 400 miles), FS1, MRN

  • The White Zone: Let’s retire the All-Star Race

    The White Zone: Let’s retire the All-Star Race

    Wednesday, on NASCAR Race Hub, NASCAR announced the format for this year’s Monster Energy NASCAR All-Star Race.

    Over its 35-year history, it’s had 15 different formats. Three of them have come in the last five years.

    Does the All-Star Race excite anyone, anymore?

    What’s even the most notable thing that’s happened in this event in the last 10 years? Probably 2012, when NASCAR incentivized the segment winners to sandbag, until the final pit stop (to their credit, however, they changed that the following year to best segment average finish).

    This isn’t your father’s All-Star Race, where Rusty Wallace turned Darrell Waltrip to win the event or Davey Allison got turned, as he crossed the finish line. This is an event that’s become a victim of the aerodynamic-centrism that’s made races at 1.5-mile tracks so maligned. This is a race where the guy who exits pit road first on the final stop wins it nine times out of 10.

    It’s yet another race in a season that’s already too long.

    And unlike other All-Star Games in the stick and ball world, you’re not seeing players that, if you follow Major League Baseball, you’d only see three or four times a year (or 20 times, if you’re a fan of a division rival) in a 162-game season. You’re seeing the drivers that already race 36 times a year.

    So what made it stand out? It was the gimmicks.

    It made sense until 2004, when this was a race with gimmicks, during a season when the championship was decided in a season-long points format. But with all the gimmicks that permeate NASCAR now (and yes, stage racing and playoff points are gimmicks), what makes this race any different from a race during the season?

    Is it the million-dollar prize? Aside from it not being the only race with a purse that large, what about that is supposed to appeal to the blue-collar worker that earns $31,900 a year? For context, the median household income in the United States (and this number can vary by source) in 2017 was $61,372.

    It’s time to accept that the All-Star Race has run its course. The event, every year, is so over-hyped and enrages fans when it disappoints.

    What if instead of the All-Star Race, we use it as an actual off weekend for the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series. And while it’s off, let’s run the NASCAR XFINITY Series (NXS) and the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series (NGOTS) at a short track, like — say — Hickory Motor Speedway or Myrtle Beach Speedway.

    Then the next weekend (if we must run the NGOTS and NXS at Charlotte), run the NGOTS race on Thursday, NXS on Saturday and the Coca-Cola World 600 on Sunday evening.

    Right now, as it is, the All-Star Race is just another race weekend taking up space in an already crowded schedule.

    That’s my view, for what it’s worth.

  • Cole Custer claims Dash 4 Cash prize, wins the ToyotaCare 250

    Cole Custer claims Dash 4 Cash prize, wins the ToyotaCare 250

    Cole Custer set a dominating pace by leading the most laps and earning his second win of the 2019 season in Friday night’s ToyotaCare 250 at Richmond Raceway in the NASCAR Xfinity Series.

    Custer briefly lost the lead to Austin Cindric on a restart with 26 laps remaining, but would not be denied. He reclaimed the lead just seven laps later to win his first career short track race in the Xfinity Series, and also claim the $100,000 Dash 4 Cash prize.

    “We had a great car,” Custer said. “Mike Shiplett made great adjustments as it went. This one means a lot. We hadn’t had a short-track win yet. We’ve struggled a lot at short tracks, but this helps.

    “A lot of my friends give me crap for being bad at this place, but I finally won, so I’ve got a little bit of bragging rights there. I’m just so happy. Two wins—that’s pretty awesome.”

    Cindric was playing the weather game as rain threatened the finish of the race, but wasn’t able to have mother nature on his side. With his runner-up finish, he qualifies himself for the next Dash 4 Cash race at Talladega Superspeedway. His primary sponsor, MoneyLion, will also be sponsoring that race.

    “Congrats to Cole and those guys,” Cindric said. “I tried my best on that restart to hold him off, but they were obviously the class of the field, him and the 7 (Allgaier). We had some fun and got some points and now we will move on to Talladega for the MoneyLion 300.

    “That will be a big one for me. I would love to win that race and the Dash for Cash at Talladega.”

    Justin Allgaier finished third in his JR Motorsports No. 7 Chevrolet. He led 86 laps throughout the night and won the first stage. Similar to Cindric, Allgaier was trying to have pit strategy fall in his favor, but by the time he charged to the front, he ran out of both car and time.

    “The pit call we made at the end of the (second) stage there, it worked out, obviously, in our favor,” said Allgaier. “But I pushed really hard to get back up to the front, and I just didn’t quite have enough there at the end to really do anything.

    “I made a mistake on that restart. It really burns me up that I made the mistake, but all in all, a great day. I hope we got the monkey off our back.”

    Allgaier’s former teammate Tyler Reddick came home fourth with Ryan Sieg rounding out the top five. Zane Smith running in the No. 8 JR Motorsports car is running a limited schedule in the Xfinity Series, but continues to impress many with another strong sixth place finish at Richmond. John Hunter Nemechek, Chase Briscoe, pole sitter Riley Herbst and Justin Haley completed the top 10.

    Elliott Sadler finished in the 12th position at his home track after making the first of his two planned starts for the 2019 season.

    All cars passed post-race tech, so Custer was declared the official winner. Reddick’s car was caught with one lug nut unsecure, so potential fines will be announced next week by the sanctioning body.

  • Cole Custer wins Xfinity Series race at Richmond, Dash 4 Cash prize

    Cole Custer wins Xfinity Series race at Richmond, Dash 4 Cash prize

    Reid Spencer | NASCAR Wire Service

    RICHMOND, Va. – Cole Custer said on Friday afternoon that his No. 00 Stewart-Haas Racing NASCAR Xfinity Series team might be ready to peak in time for the Playoffs.

    Clearly, Custer is ahead of schedule, after a convincing victory in Friday night’s ToyotaCare 250 at Richmond Raceway.

    After losing the lead to Austin Cindric on a restart with 26 laps left, Custer regained the top spot on Lap 231 of 250 and pulled away for his second victory of the season. In a race that dodged a persistent threat of rain, Custer crossed the finish line 2.639 seconds ahead of Cindric.

    Not only did Custer win for the fourth time in his career—and for the first time on a short track—but he also claimed the $100,000 Xfinity Dash 4 Cash bonus that goes to the highest finisher of four eligible contenders.

    RELATED: Race results | Dash 4 Cash field set for Talladega

    “We had a great car,” Custer said. “(Crew chief Mike Shiplett) made great adjustments as it went… This one means a lot. We hadn’t had a short-track win yet. We’ve struggled a lot at short tracks, but this helps

    “A lot of my friends give me crap for being bad at this place, but I finally won, so I’ve got a little bit of bragging rights there, so that’s night. I’m just so happy. Two wins—that’s pretty awesome.”

    Custer also served notice that he expects the team to get even better as the season progresses.

    “I think we’re in a great place,” Custer said. “We’re going to get better and better. I think we’ve started to figure out our cars later in the race, and I think the second time we go back (to the same tracks), we’re going to be even better—just me and Mike working together at these tracks for the first time.

    “We’re just going to be a team that gets better and better as the year goes on.”

    Custer led three times for a race-high 122 laps. Third-place finisher Justin Allgaier led 86 and won the first stage but had to charge to the front after contrarian pit strategy left him 16th for a Lap 161 restart.

    Allgaier was second by the time caution slowed the race for the sixth time on Lap 212, but he spun his tires on the subsequent restart on Lap 219 and fell back to fifth before recovering to third at the finish.

    “The pit call we made at the end of the (second) stage there, it worked out, obviously, in our favor,” said Allgaier, who had crashed out of last week’s Bristol race after leading 138 laps. “But I pushed really hard to get back up to the front, and I just didn’t quite have enough there at the end to really do anything.

    “I made a mistake on that restart. It really burns me up that I made the mistake, but all in all, a great day. I hope we got the monkey off our back.”

    Cindric was hoping rain would halt the race when he was in the lead, but that didn’t happen. He did, however, qualify for the Dash 4 Cash two weeks hence at Talladega, where his sponsor, MoneyLion, also holds the entitlement for the race.

    “Congrats to Cole and those guys,” Cindirc said. “I tried my best on that restart to hold him off, but they were obviously the class of the field. Him and the 7 (Allgaier). We had some fun and got some points and now we will move on to Talladega for the MoneyLion 300.

    “That will be a big one for me. I would love to win that race and the Dash for Cash at Talladega.”

    Tyler Reddick came home fourth, followed by Ryan Sieg, who has finished no worse than 12th in the first eight races of the season. Zane Smith, John Hunter Nemechek, Chase Briscoe, Riley Herbst and Justin Haley completed the top 10.

    Making the first of two planned starts this season, Elliott Sadler ran 12th in an emotional return to his home track.

    Note: The No. 2 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet of Reddick had one lug nut found to be unsecure. Any potential fine will be announced next week by the sanctioning body.

  • Bell scores first Bristol win plus big payday

    Bell scores first Bristol win plus big payday

    The NASCAR Xfinity Series Alsco 300 was held Saturday at Bristol Motor Speedway with not only bragging rights on the line. For four drivers there was also a whole lot of cash dangling like a carrot in front of them.

    The race was the first in the Xfinity Dash 4 Cash program which offers an extra $100,000 bonus for the top four finishers. Along with Bell, Tyler Reddick, Chase Briscoe and Michael Annett qualified for the Dash 4 Cash last week at Texas Motor Speedway, the opening round of the program.

    Christopher Bell driving his No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota earned his first victory at Bristol along with the giant check that came with the win. This was his 10th Xfinity Series career win. Four of Bell’s wins have come on short tracks.

    “It’s pretty cool to get my first win here with the Dash 4 Cash bonus,” Bell commented. “Thank you, Xfinity for doing that.” He added, “ I’m just thankful to be here at Joe Gibbs Racing and driving for such a wonderful team, my guys on pit road have just been outstanding.”

    Tyler Reddick in his No.2 Richard Childress Racing Chevy had a special paint scheme honoring Dolly Parton. Reddick wore a big blonde wig before the race in her honor. He pushed his car about as hard as he could but Bell was too fast for him.

    “I just needed a little more to get past Christopher,” Reddick stated, “ When I’m behind him it’s hard to make a pass. It was great to have Dolly Parton on our car today. It was a good day but it’s a shame we thought Stage 1 ended a lap too soon, we should have gotten that stage point,” Reddick chuckled.

    Stage 1 started with Cole Custer and Tyler Reddick on the front row. The first caution came out when the car of Jeff Green got loose and took Ross Chastain with him,  and with both cars receiving heavy damage, they were both done for the day. Reddick had a miscue with his spotter, thinking the stage was over, and backed off, giving Justin Allgaier the Stage 1 win.

    Stage 2 started with Allgaier and Reddick on the front row. Allgaier kept the lead at the restart and led every lap in the stage. The only caution was for the spinning car of Jeremy Clements. The stage would end under caution giving the Stage 2 win to Allgaier.

    The final stage of the race started with Allgaier once again in the lead. Out of the blue, the No. 7 of Allgaier had problems and he took his car to the garage. Bell took the lead when Allgaier slowed on the track. The only caution of the stage was for Harrison Burton who slid sideways and slowed after cutting a tire down.

    Brandon Jones took a risk and stayed out when everyone else came to pit road, inheriting the lead. Several cars were fighting loose conditions and bounced off the wall including the No. 00 of Cole Custer in his Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota. Bell grabbed the lead when Jones fell back on older tires and never looked back winning the race along with the Dash 4 Cash money.

    Custer, in spite of fighting loose conditions, kept his car in the top five all day and came home in third place. Although he had a good finish Custer wasn’t very happy with his performance.

    “I wasn’t happy. It’s so frustrating,” Bell said, “ I think we were the best car at the end it’s just we didn’t have the fire off speed on the restarts to get the track position. We’ll all get better, I’m just so frustrated. I wish we’d had a shot to really go for the win there.”

    Chase Briscoe and John Hunter Nemechek would round out the top five. Austin Cindric, Justin Haley, Michael Annett, Noah Gragson, and Harrison Burton finished sixth through 10th, respectively.

    The lap leaders for today’s race were Allgaier who led 138 laps, Reddick who led 61 laps, Custer leading 26 laps, Jones led 19 laps, and Bell led 57 laps.

    Reddick leads the Xfinity Series Standings with 321 points, Bell is second with 308 points, Custer is third with 275 points, Cindric is fourth with 251 points and Annett rounds out the top five with 238 points.

    The NASCAR Xfinity Series heads to Richmond International Raceway on Friday, April 12 where the top four finishers at Bristol – Bell, Reddick, Custer and Briscoe – will be eligible for the Dash 4 Cash.

    Xfinity Series Race Number 7
    Race Results for the 37th Annual Alsco 300 – Saturday, April 6, 2019
    Bristol Motor Speedway – Bristol, TN – 0.533 – Mile Concrete
    Total Race Length – 300 Laps – 159.9 Miles

    Fin Str No Driver Team Laps S1Pos S2Pos Pts Status
    1 8 20 Christopher Bell Rheem Toyota 300 7 3 52 Running
    2 2 2 Tyler Reddick Dolly Parton Chevrolet 300 2 2 53 Running
    3 1 0 Cole Custer Haas Automation Ford 300 3 4 49 Running
    4 3 98 Chase Briscoe # Nutri Chomps Ford 300 6 7 42 Running
    5 10 23 John Hunter Nemechek # Allegiant Chevrolet 300 9 5 40 Running
    6 4 22 Austin Cindric MoneyLion Ford 300 5 6 42 Running
    7 11 11 Justin Haley # LeafFilter Gutter Protection Chevrolet 300 8 10 34 Running
    8 9 1 Michael Annett Pilot Flying J Chevrolet 300 0 0 29 Running
    9 7 9 Noah Gragson # Switch Chevrolet 300 0 0 28 Running
    10 5 18 Harrison Burton(i) Dex Imaging Toyota 300 4 8 0 Running
    11 16 8 Zane Smith The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas Chevrolet 300 0 0 26 Running
    12 14 39 Ryan Sieg Shop Boss Chevrolet 299 0 0 25 Running
    13 15 51 Jeremy Clements All South Electric Chevrolet 299 0 0 24 Running
    14 13 19 Brandon Jones Menards/Jeld-Wen Toyota 298 10 9 26 Running
    15 19 8 Gray Gaulding PANINI Chevrolet 297 0 0 22 Running
    16 21 7 Ray Black II ISOKERNFrplcs&Chmnys/ScubaLife Chev 296 0 0 21 Running
    17 20 66 Timmy Hill CrashClaimsR.US Toyota 294 0 0 20 Running
    18 23 15 BJ McLeod teamjdmotorsports.com Chevrolet 294 0 0 19 Running
    19 25 36 Josh Williams Peg Leg Porker/Venture Wipes Chevrolet 293 0 0 18 Running
    20 18 42 Chad Finchum Amana Toyota 292 0 0 17 Running
    21 31 5 Matt Mills J.F. Electric Chevrolet 292 0 0 16 Running
    22 26 0 Garrett Smithley teamjdmotorsports.com Chevrolet 292 0 0 15 Running
    23 22 86 Brandon Brown # Brandonbilt Motorsports Chevrolet 291 0 0 14 Running
    24 30 78 Vinnie Miller Koolbox Chevrolet 291 0 0 13 Running
    25 32 52 David Starr CHASCO/Shoun Trucking Chevrolet 289 0 0 12 Running
    26 28 99 Tommy Joe Martins Diamond Gusset Jeans/AAN Adjusters Toyota 288 0 0 11 Running
    27 27 35 Joey Gase Toyota 286 0 0 10 Running
    28 24 17 Kyle Weatherman(i) East Carolina University Chevrolet 284 0 0 0 Running
    29 34 74 Mike Harmon Woobies Shoes Chevrolet 272 0 0 8 Running
    30 6 7 Justin Allgaier ARMOUR Vienna Sausage Chevrolet 227 1 1 27 Accident
    31 17 90 Alex Labbe Auto Credit Nation/Auto-National.com Chevrolet 193 0 0 6 Rear Gear
    32 36 1 Stephen Leicht teamjdmotorsports.com Chevrolet 190 0 0 5 Radiator
    33 12 4 Ross Chastain teamjdmotorsports.com Chevrolet 41 0 0 4 Accident
    34 37 38 Jeff Green RSS Racing Chevrolet 40 0 0 3 Accident
    35 33 89 Morgan Shepherd Visone RV Chevrolet 13 0 0 2 Water Pump
    36 29 93 Josh Bilicki RSS Racing Chevrolet 12 0 0 1 Ignition
    37 35 13 John Jackson Street Toys/CrashClaimsR.US Toyota 9 0 0 1 Suspension